a moment to remember
by 2olluxampora
Summary: It takes Parvati a few months to realize she's dating Lavender. That could happen to anyone, surely.


**Written for Hogwarts:**

 **Muggle Art task #2: write about something good happening on a starry night, + optional prompt: (pairing) non-canon of your choice**

 **word count: 1368**

 **other prompts at bottom**

* * *

"–...my girlfriend."

Parvati froze mid-step, gripping the doorframe so tightly her fingers started to ache. What was that? Lavender had a girlfriend? Since when?

Shaking her head, she turned and went back into her room, shutting the door. If her best friend didn't see fit to tell her about her relationship, she wouldn't eavesdrop. It stung, though, quite a bit. The two of them had been inseparable since they were eleven, and had been sharing a flat in London for close to a year now. How could she possibly not know?

"Forget it," Parvati mumbled under her breath, dropping down in front of her mirror to do her makeup. As hurt as she was, it was only getting later at night, and she still had to get ready for dinner with Lavender, and it wouldn't do to look anything less than perfect. 'Girly' interests like clothes and makeup had been some of the first things to connect them, and focusing on it always seemed to calm Parvati down a little.

She wasn't sure when she'd fallen in love with Lavender. Perhaps it was sometime around sixth year, when Lavender had been so besotted with Ron Weasley, and Parvati had realized that she'd never cared about a boy even half that much. She scowled at her reflection, fixing the eyeliner she'd smudged in her frustration. Lavender was happy, clearly. Why couldn't she just be satisfied with that?

"Oh, you look gorgeous!" Her bedroom door burst open, revealing a beaming Lavender. Parvati turned to look at her, and tried to smile back, but it came out looking more like a grimace.

"Thanks," Parvati said, smoothing out a few imaginary wrinkles from her skirt so that she didn't have to look at Lavender for a moment. Looking at Lavender meant noticing her lips, and that meant imagining someone else kissing them. "So do you, as always. Isn't that the shirt you got when we were at that weird little Muggle shop? I _told_ you it would look great."

Lavender nodded, flopping down on Parvati's bed gracelessly.

"It does, doesn't it? You always have great taste. It's part of why I love you so much."

That was the last straw. Parvati couldn't just sit there and play along anymore, listening to Lavender say those things without meaning them the way she wanted her to. She needed to do something about this, even if it hurt.

"I heard you on the phone earlier," she said abruptly, capping her lipstick. Lavender cocked her head in reply, giving the impression of a confused puppy.

"Yeah, my boss wanted to know if I could come into work tomorrow, and I was telling her no, because we have plans. What about it?"

"You mentioned something about a girlfriend. Why didn't you tell me you were seeing someone?" Parvati felt like her heart was going to burst right out of her chest. She bit her lip, staring out the window. The sky was clear tonight. She could see dozens of little pinprick stars.

When Lavender started laughing, it was all she could do not to run out of the room.

"Oh my God, Parvati, you're so funny. You had me really worried there for a second! I thought something was wrong," she said, a little out of breath from laughing. Lavender shook her head fondly, wiping a stray tear from her eye.

" _What_ exactly was funny about that? I'm serious, Lav. Why does _your boss_ know about this girlfriend and not me? We tell each other everything."

"Um, are you being serious right now?" Lavender asked, frowning now and leaning a little closer.

"Yes?" Parvati said, voice lilting upwards at the end. "Is there some kind of joke I'm missing here?"

"Well, how would you _not know_ we're dating?" Lavender chuckled, running her fingers through her hair. "I don't really need to tell you about something you've been there for the whole time."

Parvati's jaw dropped. She stared at Lavender for what could have, for all she knew, been hours. Had she really just said what she thought she said.

"Us...dating? I'm...your girlfriend?"

Lavender looked genuinely troubled now, brow furrowed and lower lip jutting out slightly in a pout. Parvati had borrowed the lip gloss she was wearing before, and knew for a fact that it tasted like vanilla.

"You're not joking," Lavender said blankly. "We've been dating for months, Parvati."

"Right. I knew that," Parvati replied, sounding just a little hysterical even to herself. She'd had what she wanted most for _months_ and didn't even realize it? "Of course I knew that."

"You really didn't know we were dating?"

"I really didn't." Parvati had a feeling that this would be downright funny if they weren't both so baffled. "When did we start dating, exactly?"

"Well, it was when you were complaining about Padma being in a relationship and how you felt like a failure in comparison, and you'd never find anyone as good as me, and I said I'd never find anyone as good as you either," Lavender said.

"And then we cuddled and watched that cooking show for the rest of the night, and you slept in my bed," she replied thoughtfully. Parvati did remember that night now, but she hadn't thought that Lavender's agreement at the time meant that she had romantic feelings for her.

"Yeah, and I _kissed you_ ," Lavender said, eyes wide with disbelief. "That didn't clue you in?"

"I...thought you meant it in a friendly way. You've always been an affectionate person. You'd had quite a bit of wine that night anyway, and besides, you didn't really do it again after that."

"At Katie's party? When we were shopping last week and you told me to get this shirt? After breakfast yesterday?"

"Well...I..." Parvati's face felt like it was about to burst into flames. Had she really been so oblivious?

"I did think it was a little strange that you were never the one to initiate things," Lavender mused. "But I thought you just wanted to take things slow."

Parvati got up, moving to sit next to Lavender instead. Hesitantly, she reached over to rest a hand against her thigh.

"I do like you a lot, and I'd be honored to be your girlfriend." Parvati leaned in, tugging her into a kiss.

"I'd hope so, since you already are," Lavender mumbled against her lips, stifling another giggle. Parvati pulled away, elbowing her gently.

"Be careful, or I might not be much longer," she threatened playfully, heart fluttering thanks to the lingering adrenaline.

"As if you could ever live without me," Lavender said with a disbelieving little sniff. Her lips were a little redder than before, smudged with Parvati's lipstick. "Now, are we going to dinner or not? I'm starving."

"Is Friday night date night?" Parvati asked as she grabbed her purse. Their weekly dinners out lately were yet another thing that she'd never questioned. They spent so much of their time together anyway, so what was the difference.

"It is, as a matter of fact. Glad you noticed."

Parvati laughed, beginning to see the humor in the situation.

"There's a reason Padma was the one in Ravenclaw, I guess," she said, taking Lavender's hand as they headed out.

"Padma!" Lavender exclaimed with glee, pressing closer to Parvati in the chilly night air. The stars were even more beautiful now that they were outside. "She's going to die when she hears about this."

"Don't you dare tell her," Parvati said immediately, already knowing there was no hope. Her sister would find out about this, just like everything else in her life. "She'll never let me live it down."

"You know I have to. Besides, she'd figure out something was up eventually."

Parvati kissed Lavender again, just because she could. She was never going to get tired of that.

"You're awful," she murmured fondly, not meaning it. "I'm glad I know now, though. Better late than never."

"This is a perfect night for our first date that you know about, too," Lavender said. "The stars are gorgeous."

At her words, Parvati looked up at the sky, trying to memorize the sight. This was a moment she'd want to remember.

* * *

 **\- love in motion: trio - lavender/parvati**

 **\- insane house challenge: 208. flatmates**

 **\- 365 prompts: 248. restriction - no more than two people in story**

 **\- fanfiction resolutions: write something really cheesy and fluffy**

 **\- crafty cooking: starter pack - lavender/parvati**

 **\- library lovers: the sweetest taboo - (relationship) best friends, (plot point) falling in love with your best friend, (word) gorgeous**

 **\- character appreciation: pureblood**

 **\- shannon's showcase: happiest minute of the week - write about the happiest minute of a character's week**

 **\- days of the month: international women's day - write a story without featuring or mentioning men**

 **\- count your buttons: (dialogue) "Right. I knew that."**

 **\- liza's loves: the pharaoh - write about making an important discovery**

 **\- jewel challenge: ruby necklace - write about a gryffindor**

 **\- scavenger hunt: write a fanon pairing**

 **\- caffeine awareness challenge: cappuccino - write a story using only two characters**

 **\- 40 days challenge: only gryffindors**


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